by C. W. Gray
The comfortable weight of Leo’s hand in his gave Sonny the feeling of safety he needed to appreciate the forest around him. “Okay, so what’s this surprise?”
“You’ll see,” Lala said, voice smug.
Sonny gasped when he saw the large fairy ring. “I’ve never seen one that big.”
“That’s what Gemma said our first night together,” Aaron said, smirking.
Sonny snickered.
Gemma snorted. “I was talking about your big toe.”
Sonny smacked Gemma’s arm. “Don’t talk about Big Billy Joe that way. He’s a mutant toe that’s building his strength to save the world one day.”
“Are you brats done?” Myrtle asked, brow raised. “I swear the triplets are better behaved than you lot and they drool all the time.”
“So does Kate when she sees me naked,” Rosemarie said from behind him, setting off everyone’s laughter again.
Myrtle groaned. “I guess we don’t have to see the fairies if you all would rather just joke around all day.”
“No,” Sonny said shaking his head. “Leo really needs to see them. Remember when I told you about them, honey bear?”
Leo smiled at him, eyes soft. “It’s your favorite Litha memory.”
“Well, it was until last Litha.” Sonny leaned up and rubbed his nose against Leo’s.
“Disgusting lovey nonsense,” Thorwald said, huffing.
“You’ll meet your mate soon enough,” Myrtle said, eyes narrowed on Leo’s brother. “Where’s Burkhardt and Neils?”
“Neils is flirting with Ludwig, and Burkhart was hitting the desert table,” Thorwald answered, crossing his arms. “What’s all this about fairies?”
“Take a seat, folks.” Myrtle waited until Sonny was settled on the ground next to Leo, then handed him Juniper. “Hold my special bean while I get this done.”
Sonny leaned into Leo. “Sometimes I think she might love the triplets more than her pot plants.”
Leo looked doubtful. “I don’t know. She really likes her special brownies.”
Oscar gently set Ash down in front of them. Sonny unwrapped her and smiled when she shifted to her bear form.
“Thanks, Oscar.” He settled Ash in his lap with Juniper, then patted the ground. “Come on, big guy. You need to see the fairies too.”
The big brown bear lay down beside him, and Miles climbed off, bringing the cats with him. He snuggled into Oscar’s side and pulled Cookie and the cats around him.
Sonny looked around. All of the children and several of the adults had gathered in the clearing. They’re going to love this.
Myrtle stood in front of them. “Okay, settle down loud mouths. Litha is a special day for many reasons, but one of those is that it’s a time when the barrier between here and Fae kingdom is almost non-existent. Many of the Fae and other species from their homeland use this time to travel back and forth.”
She waved to the plates of sugary treats spread out in front of the circle. “Now fairies are particularly fond of sugar. If we’re quiet and patient, we may just have some visitors.”
“We can be quiet,” Miles said, voice determined. “I really wanna see the fairies.”
Myrtle gave him a fond look. “Good boy. Okay, sit and watch, folks.”
Sonny settled his head on Leo’s shoulder and enjoyed the moment of quiet. Ever since the triplets had been born, he and Leo hadn’t gotten much sleep. Now that they were going on four months, it was getting a little better, but Sonny could still feel the pull of exhaustion.
His eyes closed for a moment, but Leo’s gasp made Sonny sit up.
Fairies were flying out of the ring of mushrooms. Sonny studied them closely as they attacked the snacks.
The creatures looked so much like their Fae cousins, but were tiny in comparison. Their wings were a variety of colors and shapes. Some resembled butterflies while others looked more like dragonflies. They all wore traditional fairy clothes of leaves and flowers sewn together.
“They’re beautiful,” Leo whispered, eyes wide.
Sonny watched him for a moment. They have nothing on you, honey bear. His mate’s open wonder was a lovely thing.
Sonny still found it hard to believe they’d been together for over two years now. Sonny loved him more with every day they spent together, and his heart still fluttered when he saw him for the first time each morning.
As the fairies finished the snacks, they looked around curiously, flying closer to the people gathered around. There were well over a hundred at that point.
“Oh goodness,” Lala said, still sitting on Sonny’s shoulder. “I’ve never seen so many.”
One green-haired, dragonfly winged fairy settled on Rowan’s head and giggled, voice tinkling as she pet him.
Others flitted around the children, seeming to delight in their laughter and awe.
Sonny smiled wide when a purple butterfly winged fairy landed on Leo’s head and starting playing with his hair. The look on his mate’s face looked an awful lot like Miles’ did at that moment.
“What’s that now?” Myrtle asked, frowning when the ring of mushrooms almost seemed to shiver.
Sonny watched as the ring expanded, spreading out another two feet. The grass in the middle danced in a breeze that Sonny couldn’t feel. It shimmered, becoming a green and brown blur as a much larger figure rose from the ring.
“One of the Fae,” Leo whispered, mouth falling open.
The young Fae flew high above the ring. He had light brown skin, curly black hair, and bright green eyes. His butterfly wings were a magnificent mix of green, yellow, and black, and his ears curved into sharp points. He carried more weight than was fashionable, but Sonny thought he looked absolutely beautiful. Fuck fashionable, he thought and hugged Ash and Juniper.
The Fae held a suitcase in one hand and a large orange cat in the other. Several fairies danced around him as he landed.
“Hi,” the Fae said cheerfully. “I’m Leif.” He looked around at all the children and babies, then focused on Leo and Sonny. “Mr. Blackwood wasn’t lying. Those babies of yours are adorable.”
Myrtle squinted up at Leif. “Blackwood sent you?”
Leif nodded, smiling brightly. “I’m a nanny. He hired me to help Somerset Rocchi and his mate with their triplets.”
Sonny and Leo looked at one another for a moment, but Sonny knew they were of one mind on this. “Welcome to the family,” Sonny said, smiling widely. “We’ll set up a room for you at the apartment as soon as we get home.”
Leif grinned again, green eyes shining. His wings fluttered. “Perfect! I’m so excited to see the city. I’ve never been out of Haverdell.”
The bush to their right shuddered as something big moved through it.
Sonny squealed and climbed into Leo’s lap, pulling Juniper and Ash with him. He maneuvered so he wasn’t sitting on poor Wendy and Rowan.
Leo’s arms wrapped around him and his bear rumbled with laughter. “It’s just Burk.”
Burkhart crashed into the clearing, eyes glaring as they landed on Sonny. A loud fart sounded around him and the clearing went silent. Even the fairies stopped to stare at the bear shifter.
“What the hell was in those cookies, Sonny?” Burkhardt scowled as another loud fart sounded. “I swear I’m not doing that. It’s like farts are following me around.”
Sonny collapsed in giggles against Leo’s chest. He looked at Aaron and Miles. “The cookies are a success.”
“Oh, that’s just mean,” Lala said, giggling.
Another loud fart sounded and that was all the crowd needed to start laughing. Even the fairies rolled in the air, shaking with laughter.
Burkhardt’s face turned red and he started toward them, revenge in his eyes. Two steps in, he froze in place, eyes widening. The large man looked around as he sniffed the air.
Another fart sounded, but Burkhardt ignored the laughter and sniffed around the clearing until he came to Leif.
The Fae waved. “Hi. Do you need a gas pill?
I have some in my bag.”
Burkhardt ignored the next loud fart too and stared at Leif, eyes full of awe. “You’re beautiful.”
Leif blinked, cheeks flushing. He patted his tummy self-consciously. “You don’t have to say that. I’ll give you gas-x no matter what.”
Sonny and Leo looked at each other, eyes wide. “Mates,” they whispered at the same time.
Afterword
Thank you for reading “Carrot Cake and a Witch’s Surprise.” This is book four in a series of short stories called Holiday Omegas, and concludes the story of Leo and Sonny. The next book in the series will begin Burkhardt and Leif’s story. “Muddy Paws and a Fae’s Wings,” will be out in October, 2020.
Also by C.W. Gray
Charybdis Station Chronicles – science fiction/fantasy, mpreg
The Blue Solace Series
http://mybook.to/BlueSolaceSeries
The Mercenary’s Mate
The General’s Mate
The Soldier’s Mate
The Lieutenant’s Mate
The Engineer’s Mate
The Captain’s Mate
The Rebel’s Mate
Charybdis Station
Death’s Mate – Coming Soon
Fire’s Mate – Coming Soon
Rune and Silas – Coming Soon
The Hobson Hills Omegas – non-shifter, mpreg, omegaverse
http://mybook.to/HHOseries
Falling for the Omega
Snow Kisses for My Omega
Romancing the Omega
Healing the Omega
A Pint for my Omega
Unraveling the Omega
The Alpha’s Christmas Wish
Convincing the Alpha
Title TBA – Sheriff McKenzie’s Book – Coming Soon
Hobson Hills Shorts – short stories from the world of Hobson Hills Omegas
The Beta’s Love Song – http://mybook.to/BetaLoveSong
Bennett’s Dream – http://mybook.to/BennettsDream
Justin’s Journey – http://mybook.to/JustinJourney
Grey’s Gift – http://mybook.to/GreyGift
Hobson Hills Shorts: Volume One – http://mybook.to/HHOShortsVolumeOne
Holiday Omegas Shorts – holiday short stories from the world of The Silver Isles – paranormal, mpreg, omegaverse
http://mybook.to/HolidayOmegaSeries
Cauldron Cake Pops and a Witch’s Kiss
Sugar Cookies and a Witch’s Love
Candy Hearts and a Witch’s Ring
Carrot Cake and a Witch’s Surprise
Muddy Paws and a Fae’s Wings – Coming in October 2020
The Silver Isles – paranormal, mermen, mpreg, omegaverse
http://mybook.to/TheSilverIsles
The Guppy Prince
The Not so Little Merman
The Sea Witch – Coming Soon
Book 2.5 – “A Mate from the Deep”
http://mybook.to/AMateFromTheDeep
If you would like to keep up with releases, please like and follow me on Instagram (@c.w._gray) or Facebook (@cwgrayauthor), join C.W. Gray’s Reading Nook on Facebook, or visit my website at https://cwgray-author.com
